I used to work from plans. I was new.

Took a class at the Adult Ed woodshop, and decided to make the clock from
the Fine Woodworking magazine, becasue it was classier than the the one
that they were using, maybe ten years old, and from 'another magazine'.

Great looking cherry wood, including some really neat stuff that I resawed
from a nice piece that a friend gave me. I got to a particular place in
the process, and got stuck. It didn't work the way it was drawn or
measured. So I started again with some nice figured maple. And got stuck
again, in pretty much the same place.

Some folks can't immediately see where the plans were wrong.

A trip to Woodcraft, and four tools later, I had three ways of fixing the
problem. Now there are two Shaker style clocks with reproduction period
works in them, in my small den.

And I seldom work from plans any more.

Some things I can screw up on my own just fine, thank you very much.

Patriarch